A great caliber, created by great men and great American companies. Alas, it fell victim to the concurrent rise of the .44 Magnum, which got a major boost from a movie cop named "Dirty Harry", who blew bad guys and audiences away with his Smith and Wesson Model 629. There were other problems too, like Remington trying to boost it's velocity to the point where it became impractical for law enforcement and self-defense, but the result was that the .41 withered on the vine despite being a ballistic work of art, and today it's carried and admired by a small cult following, and I'm a proud member.

My favorite N-Frame Smith, the Model 58.

Took me forever to find that one too.

The problem with these guns is that not many were made. Marlin has not made this rifle in .41 Magnum in 15 years and they draw a premium when sold, and many of these are being hoarded as collectors' pieces and not shot. But what's the point of a gun that you aren't going to shoot? My Model 58 is beat to tar, but it shoots well and I shoot it a lot. This rifle has a few small handling dings but is still 98% or so. Still, the seller told me that at least two people passed on it because he'd drilled the stock to mount a sling. They thought it ruined the collectibility. To the contrary, I thought it saved me the trouble. I plan to shoot this rifle and carry it afield in company with the Model .58.

There are advantages to a rifle and pistol using the same cartridge. It's easier logistically to just carry one round that works on both, and the rifle's longer barrel gives greater range and velocity over the handgun. Plus it's just plain "Cowboy Cool".

I already have one carbine/pistol combo consisting of a Marlin 1894 and a Smith and Wesson Model 66, both in .357 Magnum. I love that set-up for hiking and camping. And now I have a big-bore option for those trips. Or for my wanderings down Bourbon Street.

I'm a big fan of pancake holsters for belt-mounted wheelguns. I'm just sayin'. And, congrats on the 1894. Very handy carbine. I had one but loaned it out because I shot it little and suspected it was time to let it go.

Nice rifle. I've got an 1894 in .357 w/a Mdl 19 as well and love them. Now if I can ever find a pre-cross bolt safety 1894 in .44 Magnum at a fair price I'll be very happy. One of these days I might let you see an 1888 Marlin in 38-40 that predates the 1894's...

The Rifleman was a good lesson in off-body carry. Typical plot was Pa would set his rifle down on one side of the barn while he worked on the corral on the other side of the barn. Bad guys come and beat the crap out of Pa. Pa gets back to his rifle at the end of the show and drills the bad guys. Pa and Boy are happy again.

I have an ad that covers 1/3 page in August 1984 of Guns Magazine. "Marlin Introduces .41 Magnum Rifle". The rifle pictured is a straight stock with no checkering anywhere on the wood. Model 1894S, with American black walnut wood. Six lbs, solid steel forgings, 20" barrel.

The ad is hung with a magnet, and has been hanging there for a long time. Got the 7.5" Redhawk...

Amigo, THAT duo is my Holy Grail. Being a surburbanite I don't need to reach out and touch someone more than ~200 meters away. The commonality of ammo is a giant plus. Still lookin' for the rifle at a fair price.Until then, I will drool over yours.

Good for you!Didn't SFPD allow model 58s for officer carry some years back? (Until it was determined the rank-and-file had trouble controlling it?)Always had a minor interest, because it was different, but still a major caliber.Never owned one, though.

Yes they did. It was originally intended that the .41 Mag be a police cartridge to replace the .38 Special, but it proved to be a bit too much for many of the SFPD to handle, particularly some of the women that they were bringing on. For all I know, this might have been one of the old SFPD guns as it has lots of holster wear on it, indicating that it was carried quite a lot. I love it personally. It's a heavy gun, but it brings the stopping power.